Medical Xpress August 3, 2024
Community pharmacists can play an effective role in closing gaps in the delivery of stroke risk reduction therapy by prescribing appropriate oral anticoagulation therapy (OAC) for high-risk older individuals with atrial fibrillation (AF), according to a study published online July 24 in JAMA Network Open.
Roopinder K. Sandhu, M.D., from the Libin Cardiovascular Institute at the University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada, and colleagues investigated whether pharmacist-led OAC prescription can increase the delivery of stroke risk reduction therapy in individuals with AF compared with usual care. The analysis included 70 patients (aged 65 years and older) with AF and high stroke risk identified at 27 community pharmacies.
The researchers found that guideline-concordant OAC use at three...